09/30/2026
Remember when Halloween decorations were something you bought at the store for a few dollars and eventually threw away?
Well… some of those “old Halloween decorations” have become very serious collectibles.
Take a look at these incredible early jack-o'-lantern lanterns.
Long before Halloween became the plastic skeleton-and-inflatable-ghost extravaganza it is today, Halloween celebrations in America often involved parades, parties, costumes, noisemakers, masks and lanterns. By the early 1900s, Halloween had become increasingly commercialized, with stores selling masks, candy, nuts and lanterns specifically for the holiday.
And those lanterns weren't necessarily intended to sit on Grandma's mantel.
Some were parade lanterns, designed to be carried through the streets after dark. Early examples were made from tin, papier-mâché, pressed pulp and composition materials, often with a candle holder inside and translucent paper or tissue inserts behind the eyes and mouth. Put a candle inside and suddenly that goofy little pumpkin became a glowing face floating through a nighttime Halloween procession.
There are documented examples of German-made parade lanterns dating to approximately 1908–1912, including unusually large examples that were apparently made specifically to be carried above the crowd on a wooden yoke or stick. Collector Mark Ledenbach notes that these extraordinary pieces can cross over from Halloween collecting into the realm of American folk art because of their rarity, construction and artistic character.
And here's the part that has collectors paying attention:
The value of these things has absolutely exploded.
A 2025 auction in Seattle sold an antique German papier-mâché Halloween skull lantern for $600, despite an estimate of $150–$300.
A pair of circa-1950 American papier-mâché/pulp Halloween cat lanterns sold at auction for $1,950 against an estimate of only $100–$200.
And an original early-20th-century paper-mâché pumpkin lantern sold for $524.99 in August 2026, while another large example sold for $895 in July.
The really rare metal parade lanterns are an entirely different rabbit hole. One antique tin pumpkin-head parade lantern sold at auction for $500, and current collector-market asking prices for exceptional early Toledo parade lanterns can reach several thousand dollars.
But here's why these are so fascinating to me:
They were never really meant to survive.
These were seasonal objects. They were carried by children, exposed to weather, stored in attics and basements, crushed, torn, burned, discarded and forgotten. Some were probably used for only a handful of Halloweens before disappearing into the trash.
That makes the survivors all the more remarkable.
And unlike modern Halloween decorations, every little imperfection can tell a story: the faded paint, the original paper inserts, the dents, the wire handles, the candle holders and even the strange hand-painted faces.
Today, collectors aren't just buying a pumpkin.
They're buying a tiny surviving piece of what Halloween looked like more than a century ago.
And judging by what these things are bringing now, a lot more people have finally realized just how special they are.
Would you have recognized these as valuable Halloween collectibles 10 years ago? Or would you have walked right past them at an antique store?
